DAN ROTHENBERG, WAY OUT THERE ABOUT BEING GAY, REFUSES TO BEA "GAY COMIC'

Jane Ganahl, OF THE EXAMINER STAFF

Published 4:00 am, Monday, August 24, 1998

By about minute five of Dan Rothenberg's stand-up comedy routine, he puts to rest the unspoken question some audience members might have about him.

"By the way, I like my women like I like my coffee . . ." he pauses for dramatic effect. "And I don't like coffee."

The declaration causes some women in the audience sigh with disappointment - Rothenberg is quite a hunk.

"I just figure, put it out there and get it over with," says the 25-year-old budding comedy star with a shrug.

"Let people deal with it in their own way so they can listen to what I have to SAY."

Rothenberg's act is equal parts personal and topical, and his honesty, affability and good timing have made him a favorite opener at local clubs like Josie's, Cobb's and the Punchline. And on Aug. 30, he's gotten the gig of his young career, opening An Evening of Jewish Comedy at the Palace of Fine Arts, a benefit featuring such veterans as David Feldman and Wendy Liebman.

"Yeah, pretty great!" he enthuses. "I'm trying not to get nervous about it already."

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He's also representative of a growing group of gay and lesbian comics who are extremely open about their sexuality. Scott Thompson ( "Larry Saunders," "Kids in the Hall" ), is perhaps the patron saint of gay comics and still plays the stand-up circuit. And now there's Mark Davis, Sabrina Matthews, Scott Silverman, Scott Capurro, Mike Uryga - most of whom come from or still live in The City and all of whom are waaaay out about being gay.

"I think this is a great time; people are more able than ever to express themselves," says Rothenberg. "At the same time, I don't even like the term "gay comic.' When you look at this group, we couldn't be more different, other than our orientation. I say what I want to say, and don't play politics. I don't want to box myself in, and I don't owe the gay community anything."

He says as you move up the ranks in the stand-up world, the emphasis shifts. "At first the challenge was to come out on stage, to be honest about who I was. Now that I'm comfortable with that, the challenge is just to be funny, and to relate my experience in a way that everyone gets it."

Raised in Michigan, the only child of teacher parents, Rothenberg came out when he was 19 and studying sociology at Kalamazoo College. He says his parents were fine about it - the biggest issue being his mother's thwarted desire for grandchildren - but are less happy to learn he talks frankly about it on stage.

"I think they're mostly just worried about how people are gonna respond. They know I do my act in places that are, uh, less enlightened than San Francisco."

In fact, he's had some rough moments. During a recent show in a central valley cow town, after breaking the ice about his orientation, he heard an epithet from the audience.

"People were laughing, and then I heard a man's voice say, "FAG!' " says Rothenberg, a hint of disbelief in his voice. "I decided to ignore it and he quieted down."

And another time, in central Oregon: "Some well-wishers told me after the show that I shouldn't leave there alone, that I should walk out with the headliner," says Rothenberg. "I mean, how do I respond to that?"

He knows that the best comedians have always pushed the envelope, and that a certain amount of flak goes along with that.